How does LSI’s position, not only as an international distributor, but also as a manufacturer, affect chiropractors?
Manufacturing our own products allows us to be directly in touch with the chiropractic community and its needs. Also because we are one of the largest suppliers of chiropractic supplies and equipment, we pass on other manufacturers’s best pricing.

What quality control measures are implemented when deciding which products to offer?
If it is a product that LSI manufactures, it must meet strict FDA guidelines and procedures. This requires dedicated personnel to closely monitor adherence to all regulations. To ensure high quality standards from other manufacturers’ products for distribution, we require: 1) samples to field test with local DCs; 2) product guarantees; 3) literature and advertising support; and 4) affordable prices, especially for products that our doctors resell to their patients.

What are the pros and cons of purchasing used equipment?
The pros of purchasing used equipment are simple and obvious—price. You can often find the same piece of equipment for approximately one-fourth or half the price of a new one (depending on age and condition).

The downside is equally obvious: a piece of equipment only has so much useful life. Some doctors take better care of their tables and equipment than others, but finding used equipment in excellent condition is not easy. It is best to buy used equipment from a reputable company that will rework and test the equipment before reselling it and offer warranties after the sale.

What customer service features should DCs expect from a distributor/manufacturer company?
Chiropractors can have their questions answered quickly and receive immediate service because they are dealing directly with the manufacturers of the products.

Distributors are often in the disadvantageous position of being the middle men in regards to service issues. But with a company who is both, there is a better understanding of the manufacturers’s perspective, and therefore, can pass on that level of direct customer service to the doctors.

Tell us about LSI International’s commitment to the chiropractic profession.
LSI is in its 16th year of doing business primarily with the chiropractic profession. We make significant contributions to the ACA legal action fund, and our CEO, Jim Lane, is a member of the ACA vendor advisory board. Members of the LSI staff regularly teach PT reviews at Cleveland, Logan, National, Palmer, Life, Texas, and Northwest chiropractic colleges for chiropractic students studying to take their boards.

Also, LSI attends and helps sponsor approximately 50 state chiropractic conventions and college homecomings every year.

What do you see for the future of chiropractic?
Nothing brings a bickering family together like an outside crisis. How many times have we heard: I’ve seen the enemy, and it is us? I believe the HCFA and Trigon lawsuits will bond the profession as never before and that both of these suits will be settled or won in our favor. The end result will be a united chiropractic profession and a positive public outcome that will mean much more than the original Wilk decision.